Newark, New Jersey musician Jane Remover preluding their upcoming 3rd studio LP Revengeseekerz with their 5th mixtape. Aside from the 2 full-lengths under deadAir Records including Frailty & Census Designated, they’ve also released the Dariacore trilogy of mixtapes pioneering the EDM microgenre & hyperpop subgenre & the Grave Robbing tape. To coincide with Valentine’s Day however, Jane’s making a stylistic detour with Ghostholding & having deadAir help him get it out there.
“Play My Guitar” begins with this indie rock/emo opener singing about their struggles with stardom & enduring the pain of a strained relationship whereas “No Sleep” describes the feeling of experiencing insomnia due to the love Jane has for their lover. “Believe” comes through with some Christian imagery bringing some shoegaze undertones into the picture leading into “Guesthouse” interpolating “Good Days” by SZA to sing about a toxic relationship.
Meanwhile on “Spider”, we have Jane likening the love they have for this person to 1,000 waves & him crashing like those 1,000 waves just before “Recoil” shifts towards a Midwest emo vibe instrumentally assuring their partner that they’re not insane. “Something Has to Change” asks for God to save them merely because Jane wants to party & the inclusion of a “Recoil” callback while “Dead Forever” made for a stellar shoegaze, noise pop, post-grunge, slacker rock, dream pop & power pop single.
“We Don’t Exist” sings about Jane being the type to rewrite history & responding to people calling her a psychopath by asking who’re them for knowing that specific information while “Sick (Relapse)” opens up regarding their troubles regarding Jane finding happiness between alcohol & intimacy. “Famous Girl” on the other hand blends Indie rock, dream pop, art rock, midwest emo, slacker rock, math pop, neo-psychedelia, post-rock & noise pop for a confession that they never thought they’d be this prolific.
The penultimate song “Halloween” fuses shoegaze, slowcore, noise rock, dream pop, alternative metal, slacker rock & emo to directly tackles the themes of hesitation & reluctance on Census Designated while the closer “Sister” ends Ghostholding combines slacker rock, slowcore, dream pop, singer-songwriter & shoegaze singing about the only person who’s supportive of their alcohol addiction. That said: I do think “In the Dark” makes for a sentimentally envious indie rock, dream pop, slacker rock, bedroom pop, contemporary R&B & slowcore bonus track.
Ghostholding if anything feels like a continuation of the Arizona extended play back in 2023 & I mean considering how much of a refinement it is of the slacker rock direction Jane Remover went for on it except there’s a more predominantly indie rock influence this time around & the slacker rock characteristics are used to a lesser extent. Jane’s production additionally explores dream pop, emo, noise pop, shoegaze, slowcore & singer/songwriter for deep dive into their longtime obsession with long roads & empty spaces.
Score: 4.5/5
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